Bladestorm: The Hundred Years' War (Playstation 3, 2007)

This is a game you can really sink your teeth into... provided you meet a few specific criteria:

1. Patience. This game moves very slowly. You may want to start off and be able to use Guns and Magic right away. Well, I've put quite a few hours into this game, and never got the ability to use either of those weapon sets. So be prepared to put some time into this game if you really want to get the most out of it.

2. Love of Strategy. Few war games ever quite capture the strategic element of war, but this game does this quite nicely. With a ton of different "job classes" that you can (eventually) utilize, and each of those job classes having different strengths and abilities, the amount of ways you can approach a certain battle situation is staggering. However, if you don't like your games to make you think too much, this may deter you from playing.

3. More Patience. Not only is the pace of the game's campaign slow, but the battles themselves may feel slow to gamers who are used to rapid button-pressing and combos. There is no button-mashing here. The outcome of a skirmish is decided entirely on strategy, practice, and good decision-making.

Overall I give it a 5 out of 5 rating, this game is really similar to Dynasty Warriors, another PlayStation 3 title, but different in so many ways. You have to lead troops into battle, where you must take strategic points across a vast map. The story revolves around the 100 year war that took place between France and England.

Your character is a mercenary for hire capable of choosing either side to fight with or use both sides to draw out the conflict and earn vast sums of money. The money you earn can be put towards upgrades for yourself and the respective unit you may be controlling i.e swords, spears, bows, etc. The graphics are very good, and the AI of the opponents are tactful and challenging. There a few draw backs, such as a few long drawn out battles and occasional lack of gripping story may leave you wondering why you are fighting. But with the vast weapon system and individual stat system that is effected on each individual unit type, it will leave you planning and plotting against whichever side you choose to fight against, whether it be French or English.

If you are into action/strategy games, then this is defiantly a title you should try. While the casual gamer would probably find this game rather disappointing because of a lack of an adrenaline-free battle system, this game still does what it set out to do very well. It's a deep and satisfying strategy/war game, with plenty to do and (what with multiple story lines and a create-your-own character) quite a lot of replay value.

Here's to hoping that the publisher Koei, makes more games in the fashion of this one. Well done in my eyes.

This is an awesome game that allows you to command medeival armies. You need to gain reputation to build bigger armies and fight bigger battles. Many, many, many hours of place if you like this kind of game!

An early title for the PS3 it didn't do much to show off the graphical capabilities of it, think on par with later final fantasy games for the most part, however it did deliver a fantastic story along with a great system for levelling up different unit types. Throughout the game there was always an element of challenge with a healthy does of fun strategy and hack and slash when you wanted to (just go solo!). With dozens upon dozens of items to loot and use and equip yourself with the planning for missions could be extremely involved. This one's definitely worth a play for anyone who has a bit of time and can find a copy, there's nothing like taking over an entire country side for the French and then siding with the English and taking it back all over again. :)

The sounds and sound track were fantastic even if the graphics weren't quite up to par with what people expected on PS3, on that note the graphics were still pretty good.

Controls are fluid though take some getting used to when moving units instead of just your own body, and horses are a challenge to control in Melee but they should be! Pay attention to the hints and you'll have no trouble.

I first heard of this game through the demo on the PSN and enjoyed it. I purchased it, trusting that being from KOEI, whos games I have played before that it would be a fun way to take up time.

The general idea behind game play is much like the Dynasty Warriors series, however shifting from one sole character to your character controlling a squad of troops of your choice. It is a nice feature to be able to switch from different kinds of squads on the fly (that is if they are with in your area) from a swords man who is weak against horses to a spear man who is strong against mounted foes.

The story line does get a little repetitive but that is expected as how the gameplay works. There is a large amount of play time so it is worth the money if you can find it used. Fun for the people who enjoy action games but also like a little bit of strategy.

This game is good, send you to historical battles between France and England, besides the fun, ikt gives you facts and even some history lessons.

I've been looking for this game for awhile now and I tried buy.com but they ripped me off. I decided to choose Speedy's at e-Bay instead and it was just plain awesome; I got the correct game in very little time.

Props for Speedy's excellent service! Thanks, man.

good game fun to play...................................................................................

Game play is interesting. Similar to Dynasty Warriors 6 but game relies mainly on strategy later on in the game. Make your own character and lead him into battle either on France's or England's side. This game is solely based on strategy. There are no 1 overpowered characters. Every units have a weakness and a strength. Recommended for hardcore rpg strategists. 8.5/10

Gameplay flows very well and the graphics are great during the storyline and the actual gameplay. Overall a 9/10 for the creativity of a game that is very reminiscent of the Dynasty Warriors series. The game is more in depth as to how you try to improve your character like an RPG and then control groups of whatever class ranging from archers to horsemen to complete missions. The overall game is great for those looking for a good hack 'n' slash that goes a little outside the norm. Also it is great for younger gamers because the story is pretty straight-forward and not a lot of blood or gore.

Koei has done it again with a great stratigic game that developes mindpower over "tricks and force".A superb game!

I bought the game because it's a KOEI title, and wanted to try this company
And im not dissapointed in it.
It has a great deal in graphics, combats are to be by groups
that you chose.
swords man
Ranged: ( Bows, Cross_bows, Archers, ect.)
Halberds( long poles, )
Spears
horses: W/ (Swords/ Swrd+ SHDL/ Lance/ Spear/ )
and some others....

well i really liked this game, in fact i loved it.
you should try it. you wont be dissapointed.

Very good game with very intricate maps and spaces. One thing is it would be even better if it was online. Also it is slow to load.

This game is one of the best I have ever played. I love fighting games and games where you can fight as a team and not just solo. The graphics are very good and the entertainment is great.